1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus capable of wirelessly communicating with a first communication apparatus and with a plurality of second wireless communication apparatuses, and to a wireless communication method.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, technologies for reducing the complexity associated with connecting cables when image data stored in portable information terminals, such as cellular phones, digital cameras, notebook computers, and personal digital assistants (PDAs), are printed with image processing apparatuses, such as printers, have been suggested. For example, a method for connecting to a printer via wireless communication, such as a wireless local-area network (LAN), for example, Bluetooth™ or IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n, has been suggested.
Thus, unlike a case of connection using a wired interface, such as a universal serial bus (USB) or an IEEE 1284 cable, users do not have any uncertainty regarding where to insert a cable into the back of an apparatus and do not have to be bothered about where the cable is to be connected. A technology described, for example, in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-185388 is available.
For the connection using a wired interface, such as a USB or an IEEE 1284 cable, due to the cable connection, a user is able to clearly understand a portable information terminal and an image processing apparatus that are to be connected to each other. However, for a system using wireless communication, for example, for a system using Bluetooth, since wireless communication is normally available within a range of about 10 m, a plurality of communication apparatuses, such as image processing apparatuses, having an identical wireless communication function may be located within a range in which communication is available. In this case, it is difficult for a portable information terminal to automatically determine which communication apparatus among the plurality of communication apparatuses it is to connect to.
There is a similar problem in the case of an image processing apparatus. For example, when an image processing apparatus attempts to transfer data to a portable information terminal, a plurality of portable information terminals having an identical wireless communication function may be located within a range in which the image processing apparatus can perform communication (that is, a range in which radio waves can reach). In this case, it is difficult for the image processing apparatus to automatically determine which portable information terminal among the plurality of portable information terminals it is to connect to.
Thus, a method has been suggested in which, when a plurality of portable information terminals capable of wirelessly communicating with a communication apparatus exists, a list of the plurality of portable information terminals capable of wirelessly communicating with the communication apparatus is displayed on a display unit of the communication apparatus and a desired portable information terminal is selected from the list of the plurality of portable information terminals by a user operation. For example, a method described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2005-252564 is available.
Another method is also suggested in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2005-252564. In this method, apparatus information of portable information terminals that have previously established communication with a communication apparatus is stored and displayed on a display unit of the communication apparatus, and a desired portable information terminal is selected in accordance with the apparatus information by a user operation.
In addition, a method for easily identifying a portable information terminal to communicate with a wireless communication apparatus is suggested, for example, in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2005-94206. In this method, a reader receives image data displayed on a display unit of a portable information terminal. The image data is compared with a picture image acquired via a wireless communication unit. If the image data displayed on the display unit of the portable information terminal is exactly the same as the picture image acquired via the wireless communication unit, the portable information terminal is identified as a destination terminal to be wirelessly communicated by the wireless communication apparatus.
However, in a network using such wireless communication, when a plurality of portable information terminals exists within a range in which communication is available, a list of the plurality of portable information terminals capable of communication must be displayed on the display unit. Alternatively, for every communication operation, a list of portable information terminals that have previously established communication with the communication apparatus must be displayed on the display unit and a user has to select a desired portable information terminal from the list of portable information terminals.